John McCain

More often than not, my beliefs are far to the left of John McCain. I did not vote for him when he ran for president, but I had the utmost respect for him when he corrected one of his followers who made a negative personal comment about his opponent, Barack Obama. Personal attacks was not his style. John McCain is not only a war hero, but he has always proven himself to be a compassionate and caring human being. For that reason, he recently voted against a healthcare bill which would have disenfranchised thousands of low-income people.

The fact that I didn't vote for President Trump is certainly not something I have been secret about. Nevertheless, even though Donald Trump did not win the popular vote, I recognized him as the legitimate president of our country and I was willing to take a wait-and-see posture, hoping that he would perhaps shake things up and bring some positive changes here in the U.S. Instead, I have witnessed a man obsessed with his own image, creating divisiveness throughout not only the U.S., but the entire western world. Since he, himself, has no hesitation in attacking individuals who don't agree with him, it appears as if those who work with him in the White House feel they too can say whatever they choose, without regard to how insensitive their comment might be.

President Trump does not apologize for anything. The man who stated that some very nice people marched with Nazis in Charlottesville has apparently not insisted that someone who works for him should apologize for an extraordinary insensitive remark about one of Americas great heroes, John McCain. Instead, those in the White House are angry over the fact that someone leaked this remark to the press, thus creating more devisiveness among those of us who will vote in November.

The following article is from the Internet, written by David Jackson, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — President Trump's spokeswoman declined to comment Friday on the fate of a communications aide who made a joke about John McCain and death, except to say that the staff member still works at the White House.

"I'm not going to comment on an internal staff meeting," said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders.

Members of McCain's family and lawmakers in both parties have also condemned Sadler's remarks, first reported by The Hill.

~Sen. Lindsey Graham, a longtime friend of Arizona's Sen. John McCain, on Sunday ripped the White House’s handling of an aide who joked about McCain’s illness during a meeting attended by two dozen communications staff.

During an interview that aired Sunday morning on CBS’ "Face the Nation,” the South Carolina Republican said the aide’s comments were a “disgusting thing to say.” He said the White House should categorically denounce them to show America such treatment will not be tolerated.

"If it was a joke, it was a terrible joke," said Graham, who visited McCain in Arizona last week.

"I just wish somebody from the White House would tell the country, 'That was inappropriate; that's not who we are in the Trump administration,'" Graham said. "John McCain can be criticized for any political decision he's ever made or any vote he's ever cast, but he's an American hero. I think most Americans would like to see the Trump administration do better in situations like this. It doesn't hurt you at all to do the right thing and to be big."

~Graham said it was up to President Donald Trump to decide if he wanted to apologize on behalf of his administration.

"If something happened like that in my office — somebody in my office said such a thing about somebody — I would apologize on behalf of the office," Graham said.

Last Thursday, White House special assistant Kelly Sadler dismissed McCain’s position that the Senate should block Trump’s nominee for CIA director, saying the opinion of the six-term senator and former prisoner of war did not matter because “he’s dying anyway.”

The Trump administration did not apologize for the comments, but White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders reportedly scolded staffers for leaking Sadler's comments about McCain to the press.

The remark and the White House's handling of it set a new low for the contentious relationship between the administration and McCain, who is battling brain cancer 2,000 miles away from Washington, D.C., at his home near Sedona.

The topic consumed much of the discussion on Sunday's national public-affairs programs.

John Bolton, Trump's national security adviser who in 2016 helped out McCain's re-election campaign in Arizona, would not answer a question about whether the White House should apologize to McCain.

Bolton recalled how McCain came to his defense when the conservative Bolton came under fire as then-President George W. Bush's choice to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

"He spent countless hours trying to help me out," Bolton said on CNN's "State of the Union." "And much of it was behind the scenes. There was no political upside for John McCain in that effort at all, but he did it because he thought I was being treated unfairly. I'll never forget it, I'll be grateful forever, and I wish John McCain and his family nothing but the best."

Pressed about the need for an apology to McCain, Bolton said: "I've said what I'm going to say on this."

MONTINI: John McCain can plan his own funeral, thank you very much

Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, said the Trump White House "mentality" that prevents an apology for "that terrible remark" is beyond his comprehension.

"It is one thing, in the White House, for somebody to say something crude, and stupid, and disrespectful to an American hero," Sanders said on "State of the Union." "It is another thing for them not to apologize."

Since Sadler's remark was made public last week, many of McCain's friends and colleagues have rushed to defend him. They include former Vice President Joe Biden, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry, and U.S. Senate candidate Mitt Romney.

McCain and Trump have feuded since the earliest days of Trump's presidential bid. In July 2015, during an appearance in Iowa, Trump — who did not serve in Vietnam — disparaged the service of McCain, a decorated war hero and prisoner of war.

Back then, Trump said McCain was “a war hero because he was captured” and that he liked “people that weren’t captured.”

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